Rhode Island Business Plan Competition Names 13 Semi-finalists

PROVIDENCE ,RI – The Rhode Island Business Plan Competition today announced that it has named 13 semi-finalists in the 2015 competition from among 82 emerging and would-be entrepreneurs.

The competition will name winners and award prizes valued at $200,000 to all finalists and winners on May 12 at The Garage, a half-day business development conference hosted at the Rhode Island Convention Center by the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce.

The semi-finalists have proposed businesses that address problems in the biotech, consumer, environmental, health care, information technology, retail, and software industries.

Competition Co-chair Anthony Mangiarelli, partner with the KLR accounting firm in Providence, said, “We appreciate the strong effort made by everyone who applied to this year’s Competition, and we strongly encourage those were not chosen as semi-finalists to continue, because success is often a matter of persevering.”

Entrepreneur Track Semi-finalists

Semi-finalists in the entrepreneur track include the following:

CloudContacts is developing a web-based address book that self-updates as friends, family, and colleagues change contact information. Principal applicant: Michel Mullen, Providence.

FetchPark is building a transponder and companion app to help drives find and autopay for parking in urban areas without looking for coins, touch a screen, or swipe a credit card. Principal applicant: Tom Olson, Providence.

HMSolution provides pre-packaged water treatment equipment to remove arsenic and 15 other toxic chemicals at one-fifth the operating cost of competing solutions. Principal applicant: Margaret Lengerich, Providence.

Kippkitts has developed a novel compact and portable system for providing therapeutic cooling that can be used in ambulances. Principal applicant: Kipp Bradford, Pawtucket

Solution Nexus has developed an automated approach to proton radiotherapy for cancer treatment that designs and fabricates custom beam masking hardware faster and at lower cost relative to legacy systems. Principal applicant: Alan Schinazi, Pawtucket.

The Compost Plant is creating a commercial compost system that diverts organic material from landfills, producing high-quality compost while providing customized organics collection. Principal applicant: Leo Pollock, Providence.

XactSense is building a handheld, scanning device to create highly accurate 3-D maps of the built environment, which can replace traditional survey equipment. Principal applicant: Andy Trench, Warwick.

Student Track Semi-finalists

Semi-finalists in the student track include the following:

Bounty is creating automated visual content-recognition software that links to an online advertising marketplace, connecting brands with visual content creators. Principal applicant: Noah Fradin, Brown University.

EquiTrue is an advanced stability assessment system that can detect and quantify specific balance and proprioceptive impairment caused by concussions. Principal applicant: Dan Giovacchini, Brown University.

NGS Imaging is developing a scintillator that will increase image resolution and overall detector efficiency of X-ray equipment used to diagnosis and screen for disease indicators. Principal applicant: Linghan Xing, Brown University.

PICCPerfect is developing an improved design of peripherally inserted central catheter line covers. Principal applicant: Emily Levy, Babson College.

T3 Technologies has developed a GPS-powered device that will enable auto dealers to quickly find vehicles on their parking lots. Principal applicant: Alter Jackson, Brown University.

UnSync is using unsynchronized structured lighting and multi-frequency phase shifting techniques to power 3-D scanners at significantly lower cost than is currently available. Principal applicant: Leo Liu, Brown University.

Finalists will be selected later this month. To win prizes, applicants agreed to establish or continue business operations in Rhode Island.

Sponsors of the 2015 Competition

Supporting this year’s competition are 56 sponsors, including banks and investors; colleges and universities; foundations; construction, insurance, health-related, software, and other businesses; professional firms; services organizations; and a former participant.

Lead sponsors of the 2015 Competition are Cumulus Media-Providence, Embolden, Focus Vision Media, Hinckley Allen, KLR, Locke Lord, and the Providence Journal Charitable Legacy Fund.

Also supporting the Competition are Ava Anderson Non Toxic, Bank of America, Brown University, Bryant University, Center for Women and Enterprise, Envision Technology Advisors, FM Global, Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, Hatch Entrepreneurial Center, Johnson & Wales University, Providence Business News, Roger Williams University, Slater Technology Fund, University of Rhode Island, and Utilidata.

Additional supporters include Bank Rhode Island, Business Development Company, Care New England, Centreville Bank, Cherrystone Angel Group, Citizens Bank, Deepwater Wind, Delta Dental of Rhode Island, Dimeo Construction Company, Gencorp Insurance Group, Gilbane, GTECH, The Moore Company, Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, Navigant Credit Union, Nortek, Rhode Island Student Loan Authority, Santander Bank, ShapeUp, Teknor Apex, The Washington Trust Company, and Ximedica.

Additional support is provided by AAA Southern New England, Bank Newport, Betaspring, Biomedical Structures, Community College of Rhode Island, CVS Health, Freedom National Bank, Hayes & Sherry Real Estate Services, InsureMyTrip.com, Rhode Island College, Starkweather & Shepley, and Tech Collective.

About the Competition

Established in 2000, the Rhode Island Business Plan Competition has been recognized as one of the top 40 business plan competitions in the country. To date, it has awarded more than $1.6 million in prizes to competitors emerging companies across many industries.

In addition to awarding prizes, the competition hosts educational events in the months leading up to the application deadline, including business plan writing and presentation skills workshops. In addition, the competition hosts the annual Rhode Island Elevator Pitch Contest. Complete competition information, including rules, application procedures, guidelines, and business plan resources, is available at www.ri-bizplan.com.

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